Death Is Too Easy
by Gothic Dancer
Summary: The sequel to "More Sisters". Raven gets an unexpected surprise which leads to temporary happiness. Then her world turns upside-down, and Slade gets involved in the strangest thing: the awakening of Ebony's dead body. Chapter 7, the last chapter, is up!
1. Chapter 1: Tofu Pancakes

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans. I own Ebony. That's it.  
  
Yay! It's the sequel to "More Sisters!" Just to let you all know tons of thought went into that story. I really worked hard on that! Also, I was planning not to do this story for awhile, after I finished another story under "Codename: Kids Next Door," but absolutely NO ONE is reviewing that story! So, I figured I'd come over here and do the sequel that everyone wants so badly. Okay? Cool! Let's get into it!  
  
~*Death Is Too Easy, the Sequel to More Sisters; Chapter 1*~  
  
Raven slowly turned the pages of a book of depressing poetry. She quickly scanned each line, thinking deep and meaningful thoughts about the words and how they added up. It was strange. Ever since Raven's little sister Ebony died in a battle, she had been reading more of those books than ever. Each poem in each book filled her mind with sad and disturbing images that always brought silent tears to her eyes. She never showed how unhappy she was now that Ebony was gone. Well, sort of. The night Raven received the phone call from the Galactic Hospital saying that Ebony was dead she went downstairs and watched old soap operas and romantic tragedy movies. It was about four o'clock in the morning when Beast Boy came downstairs and the two of them sat and talked. It was then that Raven had cried on Beast Boy's shoulder and the two of them had kissed afterwards. Raven had never felt so good in her entire life during that one moment, but now reality had slapped her in the face and she was back to her normal self.  
  
Raven looked up from her book to see Starfire walking down the stairs.  
  
"Good morning, Raven." Starfire greeted, slightly waving her hand. "Did you sleep well?"  
  
"Okay." Raven replied in monotone. "I was up for a little while thinking."  
  
"About what?" Starfire asked, cocking her head.  
  
"Nothing that concerns you." Raven snapped.  
  
"Are you upset about the loss of Ebony?" Starfire questioned.  
  
"No," Raven said, turning another page of her book. "I don't miss her."  
  
"I know I miss her." Starfire said, running her fingers through her long, red hair. "So do the boys. Cyborg has not been exercising much, Robin is not searching for Slade's identity, and Beast Boy has not been sleeping much. I believe they are also up, pondering about where Ebony is right now."  
  
"She's in hell." Raven replied. "Where she belongs."  
  
"Raven!" Starfire shouted, covering her mouth. "How could you think such thoughts?"  
  
"Easily." Raven said, turning another page. "That's where I'm going to go after I die."  
  
Starfire sighed.  
  
"Whatever you think, Raven. Forget I said anything."  
  
Starfire turned and left to eat breakfast. Raven turned another page in her book when Beast Boy came walking downstairs.  
  
"Morning, Girls!" he greeted enthusiastically, throwing his hands up in the air. "Who wants tofu pancakes?"  
  
Starfire and Raven were silent. Beast Boy dropped his arms and sulked his way over to Raven.  
  
"Morning, Beautiful." He said, kissing her pale cheeks.  
  
"Don't call me that." Raven ordered, pushing him away from her.  
  
"Fine." Beast Boy began. "How about this? Ahem, morning, Gorgeous."  
  
Raven cocked an eyebrow. She looked at him stubbornly and went back to her book. Beast Boy sighed and went to walk away, but stopped short and pulled Raven's hood down hard on her face.  
  
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" She tried to wiggle her way out of the hood.  
  
"Say it!" Beast Boy commanded. "I won't stop pulling it until you say it!"  
  
Raven dropped her hands.  
  
"Morning, Handsome." She said through gritted teeth.  
  
"That wasn't so hard, now was it?" Beast Boy asked, letting go of Raven's hood.  
  
"Actually, it was very hard." Raven said in monotone.  
  
At that moment, Cyborg and Robin came downstairs.  
  
"Morning," Robin said dully, rubbing his eyes.  
  
"There you are!" Beast Boy shouted. "Now, as I said, who wants tofu pancakes?"  
  
"Man, nobody wants that tofu stuff." Cyborg announced matter-of- factly. "I'm making eggs, the real kind. You guys want some?"  
  
"Sure." Robin said, heading for the kitchen. Cyborg followed.  
  
"How come nobody but me ever wants the tofu pancakes!?" Beast Boy exploded, throwing a rage.  
  
"I'd like some."  
  
Beast Boy jolted around and looked behind him. Raven sat on the couch with her book.  
  
"Did you say you wanted some tofu pancakes?" he asked. Raven shook her head and turned a page. Beast Boy shot a confused look.  
  
"I said I'd like some."  
  
Beast Boy jumped and scanned the area.  
  
"Who said they wanted the tofu pancakes!?" he shouted.  
  
"Nobody." Cyborg said, taking the eggs out of the fridge.  
  
"I know I heard somebody saying they wanted the tofu pancakes!" Beast Boy announced stubbornly.  
  
"Um, oh, knock it off?" Starfire said, half asking, half sure.  
  
"I know I heard it." Beast Boy insisted. "Somebody else is here with us."  
  
"Sister!" Starfire screamed, and she went to go upstairs. Raven stretched out a hand and used her telekinesis to stop Starfire in her tracks.  
  
"Blackfire lost her powers to Ebony, remember?" Raven reminded her teammate. "She isn't able to fly or use star bolts."  
  
"No star bolts!" Starfire screamed, running past the dark shield blocking her from the door. "Sister is powerless!"  
  
The Titans stood, watching Starfire run up the stairs into the halls and to her room. Raven sighed.  
  
"She barely knows anything about earth, and she has a very short attention-span." She announced. "It's times like this that make me think."  
  
"Whatever!" Beast Boy shouted. "WHO WANTED THE TOFU PANCAKES???"  
  
"Would you shut up with the tofu pancakes already?" Cyborg asked, half yelling. "You must be hearing voices 'cause nobody said that they wanted them!"  
  
Cyborg cracked one egg into a frying pan and let it sizzle. Beast Boy gave him a stubborn pout.  
  
"Are you making them or what?"  
  
"There it is again!" he exploded. Suddenly, a black shield surrounded his mouth. Robin and Cyborg looked over to Raven, stretching a hand out towards Beast Boy.  
  
"That should shut him up." She announced.  
  
Beast Boy threw a silent rage. Raven calmly dropped her book on the couch and strolled past Beast Boy, up the stairs, and into the hallways.  
  
"We should leave her alone." Robin said to the other boys. "I think she misses her little sister deep down. You know Raven. She doesn't like to show any emotion whatsoever."  
  
Raven slowly walked down the halls and opened up the door to her room. She walked in, closed the door behind her, and locked it. She stood against the door and slid down, not knowing what to do.  
  
"The truth is," she began speaking to nobody. "I do miss Ebony. She was my only sister, my only sibling. As much as I don't like to admit it, I did love her, a lot."  
  
Raven pulled her hood off her head and stood up, leaning against the door to her room. She looked towards her bed. It was looking really comfortable right now. She walked towards it and lay down, staring up at the ceiling.  
  
"Are you tired?"  
  
Raven sat up straight with a jolt.  
  
"Who's saying that?" she asked.  
  
"Don't be afraid."  
  
"I'll stop being afraid if you tell me who you are!" Raven snapped, observing her room.  
  
"You know who I am."  
  
"No, actually, I really don't." Raven insisted. "Show yourself, now!"  
  
"It's not the right time. I still want some tofu pancakes."  
  
"You must be what Beast Boy was talking about downstairs!" Raven realized, scratching her head. "Was it real, or are we just crazy?"  
  
"You're not crazy. I'll come visit you again. Bye."  
  
"Wait!" Raven exclaimed, thrusting her right arm into the air, knowing nothing was there. "Come back!"  
  
Silence was the reply.  
  
"Come back, now!" Raven repeated, ordering. "Come back and show yourself!"  
  
"Okay, fine."  
  
Something cold snapped against Raven's neck. She whipped around, but saw nothing behind her, anywhere.  
  
"I showed myself. Are you happy?"  
  
"I still can't see you." Raven said flatly.  
  
"Come back later."  
  
"No!" Raven shouted. "I want to see you now!"  
  
"That's the thing with you. You're impatient, just like Robin."  
  
"You know of Robin?" Raven asked. "Do you know of the rest of the Titans?"  
  
"Yeah. I'll explain."  
  
Tiny bits and pieces of dust swirled together like a whirlwind. The door to Raven's room swung open by itself, and a cold wind blew down the halls of Titans Tower, freezing everything in its path. Raven got up and ran, following the cold wind down the halls. She was eventually led outside on the pathway that showed the entrance to Titans Tower. She scanned the little island the tower rested upon, but nothing seemed to be there.  
  
"Okay, I'm here. Now, show yourself!" Raven commanded.  
  
"You don't have to yell."  
  
Violet-blue lights flashed across the island and out onto the ocean, lighting it up as if it we a sunset. Out of the shadows of the tower, a tiny sense of movement could be seen.  
  
"Who are you?" Raven asked, her tone lowering.  
  
"Don't be scared. It's just me."  
  
A body stepped out from the shadow.  
  
"Good morning, Big Sister. Want tofu pancakes for breakfast?" Ebony asked.  
  
~*End of Chapter One*~ 


	2. Chapter 2: The Freakiest Arrival

Disclaimer: See chapter one.  
  
I'm loving the reviews! More please!  
  
~*Chapter 2*~  
  
Raven stood, staring at what looked like her ten-year-old dead sister. Ebony? It wasn't possible. Ebony had died during a battle with Blackfire, Starfire's older sister. Raven could actually feel her dying when she held her hand for the last time. The Galactic Hospital had called Raven, confirming that Ebony was dead, but now she was standing right in front of her very eyes! How? There was no way Ebony could bring herself back to life. She was dead! You can't use power when you're dead! At least that's what Raven thought. She decided to test that. She stepped forward.  
  
"Ebony?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
It spoke again! But how? Could ghosts speak?  
  
"Is that you?" Raven asked, stepping a little bit closer.  
  
"Of course it's me!" Ebony replied. "Who else would I be?"  
  
"A ghost?" Raven said, half asking, half-sure.  
  
"Why would I be a ghost?" Ebony slightly shrugged.  
  
"You died after the battle with Blackfire." Raven said, pointing her index finger out slightly. "The Galactic Hospital called me and everything!"  
  
"If I was a ghost, could I do this?" Ebony asked. She leapt forward and caught Raven in a warm embrace. She hugged her big sister tight as if she hadn't seen her in years.  
  
"Um," Raven mumbled.  
  
"I'm not a ghost. I didn't fall through you." Ebony remarked, letting go of Raven. "I might have died for a little while in hospital, but I was able to gain back strength and return to life! Somehow, I guess word never got to you. Oh well. The important thing is that I'm back. It's a miracle!"  
  
{I already got my miracle.} Raven thought. She sighed and looked towards Ebony. "I have a hard time believing that you did that on your own. You were the weakest little thing I had ever seen when the paramedics loaded you up and zoomed off to the hospital."  
  
"Are you saying I'm not strong?" Ebony crossed her arms and looked at Raven stubbornly.  
  
"No!" Raven replied a little too quickly. "I'm just saying that it was amazing how you were able to come back to life."  
  
"Isn't it?" Ebony asked. "Now, come on! I want to surprise the rest of the Titans and have a party!"  
  
Ebony ran inside Titans Tower with the biggest smile in the world across her face. She was practically skipping.  
  
{There's no way Ebony could have come back to life.} Raven thought. {It's just not possible! Maybe an older, more experienced person of our race, but definitely not a ten-year-old girl! Who helped her?}  
  
From his new hideout, Slade sat in a chair, watching a monitor. It read 'heartbeat' at the top, 'body functions' in the middle, and 'lifeline' at the bottom. He watched each label have a line underneath it that beeped and moved.  
  
"She seems okay," he stated. "At first, I wasn't so sure about this plan, but now I see that it's fool proof."  
  
"Excuse me, Sir," the butler began. "But those you asked for have arrived."  
  
"Excellent," Slade grinned underneath his mask. "I shall greet them."  
  
Slade got up and walked into shadows. After a moment, he walked back out with a few people following him.  
  
"I am pleased that you all could come," Slade greeted. "Please, make yourselves comfortable."  
  
One person crossed his arms.  
  
"Is this about those Teen Titans?" he asked. "Those duckies were once my students until they tore apart my school."  
  
"They make me sick," another one said stubbornly. "Come, Brother, we are wasting our time."  
  
"On the contrary," Slade corrected the other person. "This will not waste your time. I believe I have discovered a plan to get rid of them once and for all."  
  
"Keep talking," another one ordered. "Perfection doesn't have all day."  
  
"I do not wish to talk all day," Slade explained. "Just listen. You might like what you hear. I have found a way to bring a dead body back to life."  
  
"Gross!" a mid-sized one cried. "Bad luck's not supposed to happen to me, you know! I just do that to whoever I face."  
  
"What would the bad luck be?" Slade asked, curious.  
  
"Me hearing something disgusting like that," the mid-sized one replied.  
  
"I do not mean to disgust you," Slade continued. "I simply mean to tell you the facts. This awakening is crucial to the Titans. The one I awakened is a loved one of theirs. It's a perfect distraction."  
  
"Where do we fit in?" a tiny one asked. "I can't pull the strings on a dead person."  
  
"You won't be," Slade said calmly. "You'll be pulling the strings of the Titans. It's as simple as that."  
  
"I get it!" another small one exclaimed. "Wow. I didn't even need a machine to get that one."  
  
"It's the perfect plan," Slade insisted. "The Titans will never suspect anything about a ten-year-old girl they love more than anything."  
  
The rest of the people laughed evilly. Slade folded his hands and narrowed his eyes.  
  
At Titans Tower, the place was quiet, mostly because Beast Boy's mouth was still covered by Raven's shield. Cyborg and Robin silently munched on scrambled eggs while Starfire was still upstairs, panicking about Blackfire having no star bolts. Beast Boy sat on the couch, desperate to speak and pondering about tofu pancakes.  
  
"Hey, where'd Raven go?" Cyborg asked, biting into a piece of toast.  
  
"She was here just a second ago," Robin began. "I think she went outside."  
  
"What do you suppose she was doing out there?"  
  
"I don't know. Maybe she's started some weird exercise program."  
  
"Why do I highly doubt that?" Cyborg asked matter-of-factly.  
  
Without any warning, the front door to Titans Tower opened, and there stood Raven with an expression of shock on her face. She didn't need to explain why. Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy saw what had gotten Raven so freaked.  
  
"Good morning, Titans!" Ebony greeted. "Did you all sleep well?"  
  
"I'm still sleeping," Cyborg said shakily. "I'm dreaming."  
  
Ebony smiled and walked down to the kitchen table where the two boys had stopped munching on breakfast.  
  
"You're not dreaming, silly!" she cheered. "Why would you want to be dreaming right now?"  
  
"I wouldn't. I mean, I don't! I, uh," Cyborg stumbled over his words. "I'm just a little surprised."  
  
"Me, too," Robin added. "Ebony, didn't you die a few days ago?"  
  
"I can't remember," Ebony sighed. "Maybe it was just a bad nightmare we've all experienced. I'm here. I'm alive."  
  
Beast Boy was throwing a rage as he came up to Robin, Cyborg, Raven, and Ebony. His arms were flailing in the air and he was definitely screaming inside Raven's dark shield.  
  
"Big Sister, did you try to shut Beast Boy up just for wanting to make tofu pancakes?" Ebony asked. She stretched out an arm and made the black shield disappear.  
  
"EBONY!!! OH, MY GOD!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!!" Beast Boy's shouts could've broken the sound barrier if they were any louder.  
  
"Calm down!" Ebony ordered. "Take a deep breath and calm down."  
  
Beast Boy stopped and did as Ebony told him.  
  
"Do you feel better now?"  
  
"I'm fine," Beast Boy reassured. "I'm just so shocked and surprised and happy and excited all at the same time."  
  
Ebony smiled big and hugged her friend.  
  
"I missed you," she said warmly. "I missed the rest of the Titans, too. I know I've been away."  
  
"Hold up!" Raven spoke up. "Ebony, you said we were in a bad nightmare and that you were never dead. If your body hasn't been awakened somehow, why are you saying that you went somewhere?"  
  
"Gee, Raven, why do you always have to go and ruin a good time for everyone?" Beast Boy asked stubbornly. "It's like you can't find any of the good things in life!"  
  
"He does have a point," Robin agreed.  
  
"It's a good one," Cyborg added.  
  
Raven ignored the comments the other Titans were giving. All of her energy was focused on Ebony. She gave her little sister the death stare and turned so that she couldn't her silently curse at her.  
  
"Big Sister?"  
  
"Don't talk to me," Raven ordered. She walked up the stairs, through the halls, and back up to her room.  
  
In Raven's room, she was punching her pillow to get rid of her anger.  
  
"Stupid little sister!" she shouted, throwing her right arm into her pillow. "I know you're hiding something! People don't just come back alive!"  
  
She threw her pillow up in the air and ripped it in half with her telekinesis.  
  
"Why couldn't she just die, and leave me the hell alone??? I would've remembered her in spirit! Is this some sort of punishment I get for missing her?" She started yelling out every burden and problem building inside of her.  
  
Suddenly, there was a knock on her door. Raven locked it with telekinesis.  
  
"Raven?" Are you occupying your room at the time?" Starfire gently rapped on the door.  
  
"Go away!" Raven screamed.  
  
Starfire felt her stubbornness growing inside of her. She used a star bolt to melt the lock, and she walked inside the room.  
  
"Raven, I have heard the news about Ebony," she began, "and I am quite thrilled that she is here."  
  
"Yeah, so is everybody else," Raven said willfully. "Now get out of my room!"  
  
"I wish to make one last statement," Starfire said gently. "I do not believe that Ebony came back here by herself."  
  
"You don't?" Raven asked, her voice getting less mean.  
  
"People do not just appear after dying," Starfire declared. "I am certain that the people of your world do not have the ability to rise from the dead."  
  
"They don't."  
  
"That's what I mean!"  
  
"Maybe an extremely experienced person of our race with a long history in revival could," Raven began, "but definitely not my ten-year-old sister."  
  
"I agree," Starfire said, putting her hands behind her back. "That's why I think someone is behind the awakening of Ebony. Perhaps someone we have faced in the past has come back with a new plan."  
  
"It's not Blackfire!" Raven shouted too quickly.  
  
"I do not believe that Sister is behind this," Starfire reassured. "I believe Slade has something to do with this strange happening."  
  
Raven got up off her bed and walked towards her fellow Titan.  
  
"What does Slade want with Ebony?" she asked.  
  
"I do not know, but I am certain that he has come up with a new, clever plan," Starfire said regretfully. "I can feel it."  
  
"You've been practicing meditation lately, haven't you?"  
  
"Yes!" Starfire exclaimed. "Isn't it wonderful?"  
  
"Sure, whatever," Raven huffed.  
  
"Well, what I mean to say is, I shall have my eyes open to keep a lookout for anything suspicious that might be happening with Ebony," Starfire finished.  
  
"Uh, thanks."  
  
Raven closed the door to her room.  
  
~*End of Chapter Two*~ 


	3. Chapter 3: Shopping and Scheming

Disclaimer: See chapter one.  
  
I am so happy about the November premieres with the new episodes of "Teen Titans!" I loved "Car Trouble." (Is it just me, or did Raven do a lot more smiling than normal for that episode?) Alright, enough of that. Let's go see what Ebony's up to!  
  
~*Chapter 3*~  
  
Ebony stuffed a forkful of tofu pancakes in her mouth while the boys could just watch in awe. Beast Boy knew that Ebony was dead, and yet she had made herself completely at home in Titans Tower. He couldn't help but think that something was up. Of course, that took up a very small amount of his brain. Most of it was focused on being blissfully happy that Ebony was alive. Robin was surprised. He was happy, yes, but he too couldn't help but think that this happening was a little strange. Little ten-year-old kids don't just rise from the dead. Still, he was happy, really happy. Cyborg was just shocked that somebody was actually enjoying Beast Boy's tofu junk.  
  
Robin was the first to speak up.  
  
"So, how have you been, Ebony?"  
  
Ebony didn't look up from her plate of pancakes.  
  
"Fine," she replied. That was all she said.  
  
{Okay, a girl of few words?} Robin thought.  
  
"Where were you?" Cyborg asked.  
  
"Away,"  
  
"Okay,"  
  
There was more silence. Something wasn't quite right. Ebony stuffed another forkful of tofu pancakes in her mouth. She took a sip of Beast Boy's fake milk and brushed a few stray strands of her blue, spiky hair out of her violet-blue eyes. They flashed lights across the room making the white walls have dark rainbows on them.  
  
What was going on? This was not normal for a girl like Ebony.  
  
"What do you guys want to do today?" Beast Boy asked Cyborg and Robin.  
  
"Let's go to the mall of shopping!" Ebony exploded, jumping up from her seat. "Can we go shopping today? Please! Please! Please!"  
  
"That's more of a girl thing, Ebony," Beast Boy said matter-of- factly. He stopped short, realizing something. "Hey! Wait a second! You were just all doom and gloom, like, two minutes ago. What's with you suddenly being the happiest little girl alive?"  
  
"I just wanted to go shopping!" Ebony sobbed. She ran from the table and up the stairs to the roof of Titans Tower.  
  
"What is that girl's problem?" Cyborg asked, standing up. "She's acting really weird."  
  
"Someone's having mood swings," Beast Boy snickered under his breath.  
  
"I think something is behind Ebony coming back to life," Robin announced, crossing his arms. "I mean, sure, I'm happy she's alive, but this is just a little too weird."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Humans don't just come back to life you know."  
  
"Ebony isn't human."  
  
"You know what I mean!"  
  
Beast Boy crossed his arms and looked at the leader of the Titans stubbornly.  
  
"I think it's a little strange, too," he agreed, "but I think Ebony would tell us if someone or something was controlling her."  
  
"Sure," Cyborg agreed sarcastically.  
  
"Ebony is a secretive one," Robin pointed out. "Cyborg had to bribe her with a lollipop last time so that she would tell us that Blackfire was trying to destroy us all."  
  
"That doesn't mean that people can't change," Beast Boy argued.  
  
"Some things never change," Robin said icily.  
  
At that moment, Starfire came downstairs with a crying Ebony at her side.  
  
"I request to know what you three did to Ebony in order to make her so upset," Starfire said, folding her hands.  
  
"We didn't say anything that was meant to hurt her!" Beast Boy shouted. "We just said that we didn't want to go shopping with her. It's sort of a girl thing, you know."  
  
"What about the games that flash on the giant image-viewing screen?"  
  
"You mean the video games?" Cyborg asked. "Woah, I didn't think of that."  
  
"You could go to the video game and electronics store located inside the mall of shopping," Starfire suggested. "Would you like that, Ebony?"  
  
Ebony nodded, rubbing her eyes of her tears. She sniffed and gave Starfire a hug.  
  
"I just want to be with everyone to make up for the time that we have been apart,"  
  
"Speaking of which, Ebony, I wish to sa-"  
  
"To the video game store!" Beast Boy announced, thrusting his arms in the air.  
  
The boys and Ebony paraded out of Titans Tower, leaving Starfire in the dust. Once they were outside, Beast Boy turned into pterodactyl and let Robin ride on his back. Ebony levitated off the ground and took Cyborg's hand. They all went off for the mall.  
  
Meanwhile, at his hideout, Slade watched as one of the people he called clicked something into a super computer.  
  
"Nice job," Slade commented, folding his arms. "You did well controlling the little one."  
  
"Thank you," the person replied, turning to Slade, "but it was hard! That little ducky has a stubborn body that doesn't like to be controlled."  
  
"Well, that just proves that you can be of some use to me. I once heard that you almost defeated the Titans."  
  
"I would've done it if that nosy Robin didn't come and crash my school!"  
  
"I understand," Slade said, truly meaning it. "That happened to me. I was extremely close to defeating the Titans. Robin's too smart."  
  
"Agreed,"  
  
"If we work together, we can defeat him and his little Titan friends. Two strong forces together create a squad. More people to the squad makes the squad a team. More people to the team makes the team an army."  
  
"I get it," the person agreed, "but I can't do anything like this! Look at me! I'm an old guy and the hologram of my younger version was destroyed!"  
  
"I shall restore your youth."  
  
Slade shot out an arm, and a white glow surrounded the person's body. He writhed in the delightful pain as he felt everything about him become younger. Hair started growing upon his head as his skin turned paler. His clothes changed, too. He was in a tight shirt with the English flag on it and white bellbottom pants. His blue sunglasses reached the tip of his nose as his hair turned bright, ketchup colored red.  
  
When the light faded, a young teacher with a very strange outfit stood before Slade. The teacher smiled evilly.  
  
"Allow me to formerly introduce myself," he insisted. "I am Mad Mod. With my hypno-screens, I can force anybody to lose their mind, especially that Beast Boy ducky."  
  
"Well then, Mad Mod," Slade began, "do we have a deal? You join me and I shall keep your youth. Together, along with the power of the others I have called, we shall destroy the Teen Titans."  
  
"We'll teach those duckies a lesson they'll never forget."  
  
Slade nodded and signaled for Mad Mod to leave. He did and another person walked into the room.  
  
"You wanted to see me?" he asked.  
  
"Yes," Slade confirmed, motioning towards a computer system. "I am using this computer in order to completely control the small girl. However, all the kinks haven't been fixed."  
  
"Say no more," the other being said. "I am the one they call Fixit. I repair things that come to me broken."  
  
"So I've heard," Slade said, folding his arms. Fixit walked over to the super computer and examined it.  
  
"Repairs should not talk long. Who is it that you are trying to control?"  
  
"A little girl who is the sister of one of the Titans,"  
  
"The Teen Titans?"  
  
"Yes,"  
  
"The one called Cyborg is part of the team," Fixit said gently, remembering the past rendezvous he had with him. "He showed me how beautiful the real world is. I wanted to be like him. That is why I have not made repairs on myself."  
  
"Then I shall make them for you."  
  
Slade snapped his fingers and Cinderblock walked out from the shadows. He picked Fixit up in his arms and carried him to who knows where. Fixit struggled to get free.  
  
"Wait!" he shouted, trying to wriggle out of the grasp of Cinderblock. "I do not wish to be a complete robot!"  
  
"Sure you do," Slade insisted. "Trust me."  
  
Everything went silent.  
  
Back in the city, Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Ebony strolled through the mall looking at all the stuff on display in the stores. Ebony was acting a little more hyper than usual. She happily danced in circles around the boys, making them feel a little uncomfortable, not to mention suspicious.  
  
"Thank you so much for bringing me to the mall!" Ebony cheered. "I love hanging out with the Titans!"  
  
"It's, uh, great to hang out with you, too, Ebony," Robin said, feeling a little nervous.  
  
"Yeah, it's great," Beast Boy added, scratching the back of his head. "Do you guys want to head straight to the video game store or do you want to window shop for a bit?"  
  
"Oh!" Ebony gasped. "Can we go to the candy store please?"  
  
The Titans exchanged curious looks.  
  
"Why don't you go into the candy store and pick out what you want while we wait here for you?" Cyborg suggested.  
  
"Okay!"  
  
Ebony skipped off into the candy store. The boys sat on a bench behind them.  
  
"Okay," Beast Boy began, "am I the only one to notice that we a one- woman freak circus following us?"  
  
"She is acting strange," Robin agreed.  
  
"She acts like nothing is wrong!" Cyborg argued. "She's a ten-year- old that's risen from the dead and has made herself completely at home in Titans Tower eating Beast Boy's tofu junk!"  
  
"Hey, those things taste better than they look!" Beast Boy shouted.  
  
"Enough about the tofu already!" Robin broke up the fight between his fellow Titans. "We have a bigger problem to worry about than someone liking tofu! We have this girl who we know died in a battle. All of a sudden, she's come back acting as if nothing's wrong. Sure, Raven's creepy and I'd expect that from a relative of hers, but this is too creepy even for someone of Raven's kind."  
  
"Totally," Beast Boy said.  
  
At that moment, Ebony came out of the candy store.  
  
"They didn't have what I wanted," she sighed.  
  
"Whatever," Cyborg said flatly. "Are you guys about ready to go to the video game store?"  
  
"I'm ready!" Ebony cheered, skipping ahead of the boys. She received a few stares from the other shoppers walking down the halls. The boys lagged behind, hoping no one would see that Ebony was with them.  
  
"Freak," Beast Boy mumbled under his breath.  
  
Back at Titans Tower, Starfire sat at the couch watching TV. Raven gently walked down the stairs to the TV room and sat down next to her.  
  
"Greetings, Raven!"  
  
"Hi."  
  
"Are you feeling any better?"  
  
"Yes,"  
  
The two girls sat in silence for a little while. Starfire flipped through a few channels. Raven picked up a book of depressing poetry and began skimming through the pages. Most of them, she had read. While she skimmed, she thought. Her sister had risen from the dead. The Titans hadn't gotten a call for work in days. She couldn't help but think that someone was behind a crazy plan to get the Titans. She had agreed with Starfire when she said she thought Slade was behind all this. It was very possible. It was more possible than she wanted it to be. Both of them were worried. They just didn't show it. Both of them sighed at the same time. It was too tricky of a riddle to figure out.  
  
"Where did Ebony go?" Raven finally asked.  
  
"To the mall of shopping," Starfire replied, "with the boys."  
  
Raven nodded and turned another page.  
  
"To do what?" she asked.  
  
"She and the boys went to the store of the flashing games that appear on the image-viewing screen."  
  
"You mean video games,"  
  
"Yes!" Starfire cheered.  
  
"Did they say what they were going to do there?" Raven continued to question.  
  
"I believe they were looking to do the 'window shopping' there, whatever that might mean."  
  
"That means that they were just looking at what the store had," Raven replied. "They aren't going to buy anything."  
  
"Perhaps Ebony will purchase a book of depressing poetry like yours."  
  
"Maybe,"  
  
"Raven, I have noticed that you and Ebony are not very much alike," Starfire announced, "like Sister and me."  
  
"We may be related, but we're not completely alike," Raven confirmed. "Still, something bothers me about that."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Well, it's a part of my past," Raven began, unintentionally building dramatic tension. "I guess I might as well tell you this now."  
  
"What?" Starfire asked, silently begging for more.  
  
"Starfire," Raven began, taking a deep breath, "I was born through rape."  
  
Starfire went pale. She had not been on earth that long, but she knew exactly what Raven was talking about.  
  
"What bothers me is about Trigon, my father. What happened to make Ebony?"  
  
"I do not know," Starfire confessed. "Maybe that is another secret that we should never uncover. Maybe some secrets are better left undisturbed."  
  
"Maybe," Raven agreed, "but I'm not convinced."  
  
Back at Slade's hideout, he was watching the tiniest of the people he called use magic to control something.  
  
"I should have thought of that a long time ago," Slade said. "Maybe we don't need that super computer to control the little one."  
  
"I told you," the person said, "I can pull the strings on anybody."  
  
"Alright, you can control her."  
  
"Thank you, Sir. The Puppet King is the ruler of the Titans."  
  
The Puppet King turned back to his strings and magic. He pulled one string on a puppet. The puppet had spiky blue hair, a black leotard, and lavender sheer fabric.  
  
"Confession time," he said, and he stabbed his controller through the puppet.  
  
~*End of Chapter Three*~ 


	4. Chapter 4: Unite and Fall

Disclaimer: See chapter one.  
  
Thanks for all the reviews, everybody. I really hope that this story is as successful as "More Sisters" was. Well, anyway, keep those reviews coming!  
  
~*Chapter 4*~  
  
Starfire slowly flew around the TV room waiting for the boys and thinking about what Raven had recently told her. She had no idea. She knew that Raven's life was complicated, and there were things about her that no one should understand, but this was beyond anything Starfire had imagined. As Starfire thought, she realized something. She and Raven were more alike than they thought. They both didn't have a terrific past. They both had sisters that were very "interesting". Both of them had a side of them that many people didn't see. Perhaps they could actually be friends! Maybe, ever so possibly, Starfire and Raven could hang out like normal friends. It was worth a shot. Starfire looked over to the couch where Raven had planted herself. She hadn't moved since she had told Starfire about her past. Starfire put on a casual face and walked over to the unmoving Raven.  
  
She lightly tapped her on the shoulder.  
  
"Raven?"  
  
There was no reply. Raven didn't even move. She sat there like a dead log, staring at the floor.  
  
"Are you alright?" Starfire asked. "You don't seem to be yourself. You're not moving and you don't have your book of poetry."  
  
"I'm okay, Starfire," Raven said simply, increasing her gaze upon the floor.  
  
"What is wrong then?" Starfire asked, concerned.  
  
"You know," Raven began, "I've heard people say that poetry can let you express your true thoughts and feelings about the world or whatever. It's funny how different some people think. I've heard extremely happy and bright poems before. They all talk about sunshine and pleasant things. Meanwhile, some people talk about death, torture, revenge, hatred, and all those dark things in life. I wonder how two different people can be so different and yet so much alike."  
  
"I do not believe I saw the similarities in those people you mentioned," Starfire confessed.  
  
"It's okay," Raven replied. "I didn't get it much at first either. Think of it like you and me. We have exact opposite personalities, but we're so much alike. Before you ask, I read your mind."  
  
"Oh, okay,"  
  
"Sorry,"  
  
"It's alright."  
  
The two girls stood in the silence for a while. That is, until Starfire's danger communicator beeped. She hurriedly grabbed it off the table and looked at what the signal was.  
  
"There is chaos occurring at the mall of shopping!" she exclaimed.  
  
"The mall the boys and Ebony went to?" Raven asked.  
  
"Yes!" Starfire confirmed. "We must hurry!"  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"I don't have that information. This message is from the owner of the mall of shopping. He says it's extremely urgent!"  
  
"Then let's go."  
  
At the mall, all havoc was breaking loose. Shoppers ran everywhere screaming and panicking. Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy stood in a triangular form surrounded by Slade's robots. Some of them had started fires in a few of the stores, and broken glass from the windows was scattered everywhere. Little girls and boys cried for their parents to save them from their fear. Salespeople hid behind counters barely peeking over the edge to catch what would happen. Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy were breathing hard as sweat poured down their skin.  
  
"It's no use, Robin," Beast Boy said. "There's too many."  
  
"We can't fight them alone!" Cyborg added.  
  
"We need a plan," Robin insisted, "because if we don't think of something fast, we'll lose."  
  
"Guys!" Ebony called from the top floor. "I'm so scared! What do I do?"  
  
"Get away from here as fast as you possible can!" Robin ordered. "Go get your sister!"  
  
"No, I won't leave you! Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!"  
  
Ebony shot black beams from her hands towards the robots. Two out of the myriad number of them broke. Before anything else could happen, the front entrance door to the mall swung right open, and there stood Starfire and Raven. Starfire let out a blizzard of star bolts from her hands. They crashed onto the robots, breaking about half of the group. Raven lifted the rest into the air and crashed them into the walls, making their computer control devices break, disabling them. As soon as all the robots on that floor were destroyed, the girls ran over to the boys.  
  
"Robin! Cyborg! Beast Boy!" Starfire exclaimed. "You are alive!"  
  
"Barely," Cyborg announced. "Thanks, Girls."  
  
"Where's Ebony?" Raven demanded.  
  
"She was on the upper floor. She was really scared," Robin replied.  
  
Everybody ran up to the upper floor of the mall, searching for Ebony.  
  
"It will take us such a long time to spot Ebony, even if we split up!" Starfire cried.  
  
"Leave it to me!" Beast Boy declared. He turned into an eagle and flew all over the mall to look for the little girl. It took a long time, but he finally came upon something that looked interesting. He grabbed a piece of paper with a message on it with his talons and brought it back to the team. He turned back into his normal self and handed it to Robin.  
  
"What's this?"  
  
"I couldn't find Ebony, but this looked like it could help."  
  
Robin's eyes grew wide as he read the note. The rest of the team could tell that something was seriously wrong, and they looked over his shoulder. They were shocked at what they saw.  
  
Dear Titans,  
  
I have the girl. If you want her back, come to my new hideout. Once there, we'll talk. Bring anyone you wish. Get ready.  
  
-Slade  
  
The Titans looked at one another, all thinking the same thing.  
  
"Slade's got a new plan," Robin announced. "Ebony was the bait to distract us."  
  
"Well, it worked," Raven confirmed.  
  
"We need to get to Slade's hideout to save Ebony," Cyborg began, "but how do we get there? We don't even know where it is."  
  
"Don't be so sure."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Slade, once again, left us with more information than he thought," Raven pointed out. "He's got some minions this time. Look at that."  
  
Everybody looked towards a tiny blot in the upper right hand corner of the page. It was brown with a shiny black hint to it.  
  
"I'm almost afraid to ask how that makes any sense," Beast Boy said matter-of-factly.  
  
"This brown stuff looks like dirt," Raven announced.  
  
"Hello!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "Dirt is everywhere!"  
  
"And this black stuff," Raven began, gently sniffing the blot, "smells like oil."  
  
"Where do you find dirt and oil in the same place?" Starfire asked.  
  
The Titans all thought for a second. One at a time, the answer came to them. They said it all together.  
  
"FIXIT'S PLACE!!!"  
  
"Slade must've invaded Fixit's place," Robin insisted.  
  
"Poor guy," Cyborg added.  
  
"Poor guy, indeed. Fixit's not bad. Slade must've done something to make him like that. Who else has oil on their fingers?"  
  
"No one I know besides myself."  
  
"Exactly,"  
  
"We must journey to the junkyard!" Starfire exclaimed. "We must save Ebony!"  
  
The rest of the Titans agreed, and they all went off to create a plan.  
  
At "Slade's" hideout, he stood in a single light casting an eerie glow along the floors. His hands were at his sides, and he listened closely to the two people coming up behind him. Behind him, Fixit stood with red eyes glowing. In back of him was Cinderblock with a squirming Ebony in his arms.  
  
"Well done," Slade congratulated simply.  
  
"Let me go you psycho-freak!" Ebony shouted. "I don't know what I did to deserve this, but I gave you my part of the deal! Leave me alone!"  
  
"We're not done yet."  
  
"That's not fair! You promised!"  
  
"Promises are cheap," Slade scolded. "You're such a foolish girl. You fell right into my trap! I knew sooner or later a Titan would make a stupid mistake like you did."  
  
"I'm not a Titan!" Ebony insisted. "I'm the sister of a Titan! How many times to I have to tell you in order for you to get it through your thick skull?"  
  
"That sounds like an insult."  
  
"At least that little so-called brain in your tiny helmet can get that straight!"  
  
"Cinderblock, you know what to do."  
  
Cinderblock turned with a wiggling Ebony into the shadows. Fixit turned towards Slade.  
  
"I did what you asked," he said. "Give me back control, now!"  
  
"Not yet," Slade said back. "I'm not done with you."  
  
"Yeah, robo-breath!"  
  
Gizmo, Jinx, and Mammoth came up behind Slade. Gizmo smirked as he held a controller in his hands. Mammoth crossed his arms and snickered under his breath. Jinx was not loving it.  
  
"You're mine to control!" Gizmo announced, pressing another button. Fixit's arms flew up in the air and started flailing. Gizmo and Mammoth laughed uncontrollably while Jinx tried to escape into the darkness, hoping not to be seen. Just her luck.  
  
"What's wrong, Jinx?" Slade asked.  
  
"Look, I didn't like it when you said you were going to raise a dead body," she began, "which you did. I'm upset about that, but this is going way too far! Don't you think that we should just go straight for the Titans instead of hurting their friends?"  
  
Everybody stared at Jinx. She felt a blush rising onto her cheeks.  
  
"You're crazy," Mammoth finally announced.  
  
"Indeed," Slade agreed. "If you're not going to work for me then leave!"  
  
"Fine! I will!"  
  
Jinx stormed her way out of the hideout.  
  
"Stupid girls," Gizmo mumbled. "They just get in the way of everything."  
  
Meanwhile, the Teen Titans walked through the city along the shoreline in an attempt to figure out what to do.  
  
"What do you think Slade meant in the letter by 'Bring anyone you wish'?" Beast Boy asked.  
  
"I'm not sure," Robin replied, scratching his head.  
  
Cyborg took a quick look in the water. A murky shadow appeared beneath the waves. A small smile emerged on his face.  
  
"I know," he said, and Tramp surfaced. Tramp babbled some gibberish and raised a giant hammer out of the water. "Uh, no, I don't have anything that needs to be fixed, but do you know where Aqualad is?"  
  
Tramp smiled big and dove underneath the water. After a few minutes of waiting, the Titans saw him and Aqualad come up.  
  
"Hey, guys," Aqualad greeted, "Tramp said you guys needed to see me about something."  
  
"Yeah," Robin agreed. Starfire stretched out a hand and helped Aqualad onto the land. "We need some serious help. Take a look at this." Robin handed the note from Slade to Aqualad.  
  
"Slade is an enemy of ours," Starfire commented.  
  
"And he has my sister," Raven added. "That's the girl he's talking about."  
  
"I'm sorry about this," Aqualad said truthfully. "What are you guys going to do?"  
  
"We're going to track Slade down, but we need some help," Cyborg informed. "We've battled this guy before, and he's a real tough one. He's worse than Trident."  
  
"I haven't heard a lot about Trident lately," Aqualad announced, crossing his arms. "I wonder if he has anything to do with your situation."  
  
"With our luck, he'll be one of Slade's new minions along with Fixit," Raven said flatly, hiding underneath her hood and robe. "There's no way he could be doing this all by himself, and there is no way in hell that Ebony came back to life for good. She's practically an illusion."  
  
"Like Mad Mod!" Beast Boy exclaimed.  
  
"To be honest, I have no clue who you're talking about," Aqualad began, "but it sounds bad."  
  
"It is bad," Starfire confirmed, "because these people that we speak of, we have battled before. They are coming back to haunt us like a ghost!"  
  
"Like Ebony," Raven said darkly. "I don't care anymore. I'm proving her true death."  
  
"Oh, wow, Raven," Aqualad stepped back in slight shock. "I didn't know what you were going through. I mean, I understand why you're frustrated, but I've never heard anything like that before."  
  
"Believe it!" Raven ordered. "Ebony died and that's all there is to it! I'm proving her death. As soon as I do, she'll be out of my life forever!"  
  
Raven turned sharply so that she wasn't looking at the rest of the team. She shut her eyes tightly, wishing that she could just wake up from this horrible nightmare.  
  
"Well, I guess we better be going to the junkyard," Robin said quietly.  
  
The Titans followed Robin down the streets and into the junkyard of the downtown city. They split up and searched the area for the passageway into Fixit's garage.  
  
In time, Cyborg accidentally slipped on a bag of trash, falling headfirst into a small passage leading underground.  
  
"Hey, Guys, I think I found a way in!" he called. The rest of the Titans followed him into the passageway. Starfire used a star bolt from her hand to make a small light to guide everybody safely through the dark tunnels.  
  
"I don't want any of us to get lost," Robin announced. "Hold hands so that we stay together."  
  
The Titans joined hands in the darkest of the halls. Robin stood in the middle and walked slightly ahead of everyone followed by Starfire creating the lights and everyone else behind her.  
  
Robin blinked for a second.  
  
"Titans, stay on your toes."  
  
Silence.  
  
"Titans?" he asked, looking around. "Guys? Where are you?"  
  
It was no use calling. The Titans had been split up.  
  
~*End of Chapter Four*~ 


	5. Chapter 5: A Big Secret Revealed

Disclaimer: See chapter one.  
  
It's time for something I don't do very often! Drum roll, please. *dun, dun, dun, dun, ect.* It's time for me to answer reviews! Yay! First off, Moon girl 16, you totally rock for reviewing all the work I do no matter how weird it might be. Thank you. Second, Starre, thanks to you, the Ebony Saga with the Titans is going to be one story longer! I was planning to end it with this story, but now I've gotten an idea for a third story based on your requests for a Robin/Jinx story. The final story in the Ebony Saga will indeed be a Robin/Jinx coupling story, okay? Also, thanks for the tip about Tramm. If you want me to reply to more reviews, review this chapter!  
  
~*Chapter 5*~  
  
Beast Boy was the first of the Titans to start panicking. He was all alone, and he knew it. The place he was in was so dark and hot that it was hard to run, let alone breathe. Despite that, he started running in an attempt to find anyone that could help him out of this.  
  
"Robin! Star! Cy!" he called, running around in circles. "Aqualad! Raven! Ebony! Are any of you guys here?" He stopped short. "Guys, this isn't funny! Come back now!"  
  
"Stop shouting, my ducky. Do you need a detention?"  
  
"That voice!" Beast Boy whispered. "I know that voice!"  
  
"Hey, are you passing notes? Read it aloud to the rest of the class!"  
  
"What rest of the class?"  
  
"Aye, I think someone woke up and didn't eat breakfast this morning. Are you slacking off when it comes to your school performance?"  
  
Mad Mod walked out from the darkness in his teaching suit.  
  
"What? Impossible!" Beast Boy cried as he stepped back in shock. "You're just a hologram! You can't hurt me."  
  
"Really?" Mad Mod asked back. "Could a hologram do this?" He poked Beast Boy in the stomach with his cane.  
  
"But the real you is just some old guy!" Beast Boy accused. "Besides, we put you in jail a long time ago!"  
  
"Isn't it great to have your youth restored? Now then, I think a hypno-screen is needed to fix you up."  
  
With that, the entire place turned into one giant hypnotic screen. Beast Boy shouted and fell back. He tried to crab-crawl his way out of the room, but it was too late.  
  
"Don't look at the screen," he told himself. "Don't look at the-" But he couldn't finish his sentence. Beast Boy had become a victim to Mad Mod's screens once again. He sat there in the middle of the floor drooling all over the place.  
  
Starfire was the second one to go.  
  
"Hello," she called, slowly walking down the halls of the dark room she was in, "is anybody else occupying this area at the time? Is anybody here with me?" Starfire could feel her fear rising up through her and affecting every single little cell in her body. Soon, she started to shiver in pure terror. "Cyborg! Aqualad! Ebony! Beast Boy! Raven! Robin! Where are all of you?"  
  
"And so the beautiful alien Starfire continued her search for her friends,"  
  
"Who is there?" Starfire gasped, looking around the room. She, too, was in total darkness. "Show yourself, please!"  
  
"The eerie darkness of the room she was in frightened her, but she continued to call out for her friends."  
  
"Is someone trying to narrate my search for my friends?"  
  
"A voice followed her. The voice almost seemed to control her, just like I am."  
  
Starfire looked to her hands to see strings attached to them. She looked at her feet to see those strings attached to her legs. There was one string coming out of the top of her head, too.  
  
"My body!" Starfire screamed, flailing to get the strings off. "Someone is turning me into something like, like,"  
  
"A puppet?"  
  
Suddenly, the room brightened. Starfire stood on tiny stage with her feet off the ground, but she wasn't flying. She was being held by torturing strings. Before she knew it, she couldn't move on her own. She couldn't even speak on her own. She looked up to see who was doing this to her.  
  
"Are you enjoying the Puppet King's show?" he asked. "Now, dance. Dance for the audience, Starfire. They came to see a show."  
  
Lights came up on the audience members. Slade's robots stood there, eyes narrowed.  
  
"Starfire continued to call out for her friends. Soon, she ran into a group of her enemies," the Puppet King continued. "She went to use a star bolt. 'My weapon is disabled!' she cried, and the enemy attacked."  
  
Cyborg was third.  
  
"Hey, where the heck am I?" he asked himself, slowly walking down the dark halls. "Guys, where are you? We've been separated!"  
  
Cyborg walked down the halls, his metal feet making a gentle clack against the floor. He used his eye to guide him through the thick darkness. He constantly looked behind him to see if anyone was coming.  
  
"Raven! Star! B.B.! Robbie! Aqualad! Ebony! Are you guys around here? Did anyone come with me? I don't think we planned this when we decided that we were going to go after Slade!"  
  
Before he could say anything else, something grabbed Cyborg behind him. He turned around and looked straight in the eyes of Cinderblock. He tried to fight his way out of the tight grip.  
  
"Let me go!" he shouted.  
  
"I don't think that'll be happening anytime soon." Cyborg looked straight ahead and saw Fixit coming out from the darkness. "I have my orders, and we will finally make those repairs that have needed doing this whole time."  
  
"You teamed up with Slade because you wanted to make repairs on me?!" Cyborg exploded. "I thought I showed you how great it was to be human!"  
  
"Don't be so silly," Fixit reasoned. "Slade showed me how great it was to be a robot. Your biometrics are inferior."  
  
Cyborg could only stare at Fixit's red eyes. Cinderblock tightened his grip on the robot. Cyborg squirmed, trying to get free.  
  
"You've been reprogrammed," he whispered.  
  
Next was Aqualad.  
  
"Hey, is anybody here?" he asked into the darkness. "Hello? Can somebody help me out? Anyone?"  
  
He walked, somewhat nervously, down the halls. Although he worked alone, Aqualad never dealt with anything like this. He always had Tramm to back him up, but this was totally different. This time, he was alone, for real. He shook his head and cautiously walked.  
  
"Starfire! Beast Boy! Raven! Cyborg! Robin! Ebony, whoever you are! Can any of you hear me?" he called. There was no reply. The hair on the back of his neck started to stand on end. "This is bad."  
  
"And Perfection is tired of listening to it!"  
  
Aqualad whirled around to see Trident attack. He jumped out of the way at the last second, but kept getting bombarded with the villain's attacks. Silently, he wished that Beast Boy would appear and back him up.  
  
Now, it was Robin's turn.  
  
Out of all the Titans, Robin had to be the least scared. He was still scared, yes, but he stood his ground and held a straight face. He took tiny steps as he observed his surroundings.  
  
"Let's see," he began, "I'm in the middle of my worst enemy's hideout with a bunch of other villains who probably want to get me. I've been separated from my friends, and one of those friends has a sister that's probably in grave danger. And how are you?"  
  
"Just fine, thanks."  
  
Robin whipped around but saw nothing down the dark halls of the hideout. He narrowed his eyes and scratched his head.  
  
"This is weird," he said to himself. "Is anybody out there? Hello? Ebony! Aqualad! Beast Boy! Starfire! Cyborg! Raven!"  
  
"Stop shouting, you stupid loser!"  
  
Suddenly, a light appeared behind Robin. He turned to see a single TV on. Soon there was another activated, and then another, and then another until the entire room shined with the lights. Robin squinted and listened to what the people on the TVs were saying.  
  
"Oh, it looks as if we've got ourselves the leader of the Teen Titans. What are you doing here without the rest of the team?" Gizmo asked.  
  
Robin could only step back in surprise. He went to destroy the TVs with his bird-a-rang, but something gave him a good punch in the back from behind. Mammoth grabbed one of the TVs and threw it at the Titan leader. Robin rolled out of the way but was stopped short by one of the spider legs out of Gizmo's backpack.  
  
"Where's your little girlfriend?" he asked, gasping for breath.  
  
"Who? Jinx?"  
  
"That sissy girl couldn't take all the heat of capturing that other little girl," Mammoth explained. "She's on her own now."  
  
The last thing Robin saw was a flash of Jinx on her own in his mind; then his world went black.  
  
And then there was one.  
  
Raven sat in a corner of a warm room. Her hood was pulled low on her face and her expression was gloomier than normal. Her arms were crossed, and her knees were pulled up against her chest. She was caught. Beast Boy was caught by Mad Mod, Starfire by the Puppet King, Cyborg by Fixit and Cinderblock, Aqualad by Trident, Robin by Mammoth and Gizmo, and Raven by Slade. She slowly brought her head up. She felt weak. It was hard to breathe, and Slade staring down at her wasn't making it any easier.  
  
"Tell me," Raven quietly demanded, "where my sister is."  
  
"In time out," Slade replied simply. "I knew you Titans would want to come rescue her. Tell me, did you enjoy the tricks and traps set out in the halls?"  
  
"They were made by me!" Mumbo Jumbo called from behind the arch villain.  
  
"And nobody cares," Lightning announced, pushing him to the side.  
  
"You monsters," Raven whispered, "all you care about is death and destruction. You're all a bunch of maniacs that were bored so you decided to go enslave the world. I want my little sister back, and I want her back now."  
  
"I'm afraid that's impossible," Slade continued. "You see, Raven, it's quite simple. I was thinking too small in all my other plans to destroy you and the rest of the Titans. After seeing some of the battles that other villains put you through, I got an idea. I summoned everyone here and restored them to be the villains they truly are. I was most impressed with Mad Mod, the Puppet King, Fixit, Cinderblock, Trident, Gizmo, Mammoth, you know. Right now, your Titan friends are in their clutches. Don't feel left out. They're suffering as well."  
  
"If you wanted to destroy the Titans, then how come you kidnapped my sister?" Raven asked.  
  
"An inferior annoyance like her was easy bait, don't you agree?"  
  
"Don't talk about my sister like that!"  
  
{Maybe we shouldn't,} Thunder thought, scratching his head. {Maybe this is something like when Brother and I encountered the green one.}  
  
"Raven," Slade said, "if you want your sister back, why don't you fight for it? Why don't you just use telekinesis and throw me into a wall? Wouldn't something like that be easy for you?"  
  
"If I use my powers, you'll kill Ebony, wherever she is," Raven replied, rage filling her. "Even though I could destroy you easily and reveal your identity to the world, I don't want to lose my sister." She looked up to the Thunder and Lightning. "If you guys care about each other as brothers, you wouldn't want to lose each other either. One of you must know how I feel."  
  
Thunder slightly squirmed in place. He knew exactly what Raven was talking about. Lightning crossed his arms and looked at the Titan stubbornly. Yeah, he knew what she was talking about, but he didn't really want to admit it. He didn't really do sappy moments with siblings.  
  
"What a precious little girl we have here," Slade commented on Raven's speech. "Perhaps you're not as much of a depressed girl as I thought, but that won't do any use. You and your sister are going to be dead."  
  
"No, they won't!"  
  
Slade turned around only to be punched in the face by Thunder. Mumbo Jumbo went to help Slade, but Lightning stopped him in his tracks. He delivered a storm of lightning bolts to the evil magician. As his magic spells were undone, the Titans, from their capture spots, awakened. Beast Boy stopped drooling on the floor; Mad Mod turned back into an old man and his hypno-screens were undone. Starfire turned back to a girl, and the Puppet King turned back into a normal puppet. Fixit's eyes went back to their blue color. Cinderblock fell to the floor after a good strength kick from Cyborg. Trident weakened and Aqualad was able to kick him back to the bottom of the ocean (literally). Gizmo's technology was disabled, leaving him and Mammoth defenseless. A few good karate chops from Robin took them out easy.  
  
Mumbo Jumbo fell to the floor as the normal person he once was. Lightning stood before him with a smirk on his face. Slade lay on the floor courtesy of Thunder. He walked over to Raven and helped her stand up.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asked, dusting her off.  
  
"Fine," Raven replied. "Where are the Titans? Where's Ebony?"  
  
Out of the corner of her eye, Raven saw Slade still moving on the floor.  
  
"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" she shouted, lifting Slade into the air. She used her powers and smacked him into a wall. "You wanted me to do that, so I did!" She walked over to the psycho villain. "Tell me where my sister is, now."  
  
"Never," Slade mumbled. "I will never tell you."  
  
"Oh, shut up!" Lightning ordered, throwing another bolt in his face. His mask started to crack. "Raven, I'll tell you. Slade locked Ebony up down that hall." Lightning pointed down a dark hallway. Without another word, Raven ran down the hallway. Thunder and Lightning followed.  
  
"Big Sister!"  
  
"Ebony!"  
  
Raven dropped to her knees and grabbed his sister's hands from inside her prison cage. Thunder handed her the keys. She fumbled with them for a moment and finally stuck one inside the keyhole. She turned it and grabbed Ebony inside. The sisters locked each other in a warm embrace.  
  
Thunder and Lightning knew where this was going.  
  
"We'll go gather up the other villains and your friends," Lightning offered. He and his brother walked down the halls back to where Slade was defeated.  
  
"Big Sister," Ebony began, "I have something to tell you."  
  
"I can wait," Raven insisted. "Let's just go home."  
  
"This has to be said now!"  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"There's something wrong with me," Ebony mumbled.  
  
"Are you sick?" Raven asked. "If you're not feeling well, we'll go home and call a doctor. Maybe we can order in some food, or Beast Boy could make tofu casserole! We'll watch comedy movies and play video games all night. Would you like that?"  
  
Ebony didn't reply. She looked off to the side as her eyes filled with tears.  
  
"I won't be able to do that," she announced.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Slade wasn't lying when he said I was going to be dead soon."  
  
"You've come back from the dead, right?"  
  
"With help,"  
  
Raven stared at her little sister. When she finally was able to accept that her sister was back, she goes and says that she did something wrong. Raven couldn't digest that.  
  
"Nonsense!" she argued. "Everything's going to be fine. I promise."  
  
"You'll break that promise in a matter of minutes!" Ebony yelled. "Everything's not going to be fine. Nothing's been fine since the day I was born! There isn't a reason for me to be born. I shouldn't have been! You were supposed to be an only child throughout all of eternity."  
  
"But?"  
  
"But Trigon is just so," Ebony stopped.  
  
"What happened? What did Trigon do?" Raven asked as she shook her sister. "Tell me!"  
  
"He's just so horrible," Ebony explained. "You, Big Sister, Raven, I know all about your past. I know that's weird for a younger sibling to know, but I do. I, too, have a past like that."  
  
"But, Trigon should have left my mother alone,"  
  
"He did."  
  
Raven's eyes grew wide.  
  
"Big Sister, we're not 100% blood-related sisters! Trigon, that horrible demon, raped another woman!"  
  
Raven shook with a mix of rage and confusion running through her veins.  
  
"But that's impossible!" she exclaimed. "We look exactly alike! We look like real sisters."  
  
"He must've planned something out," Ebony reasoned, "because we may look alike, but we are not true sisters."  
  
Raven could only sit there in pure shock. She felt her heart stop and her fingers shake.  
  
"Oh, Ebony!" she cried, grabbing her. "I don't care what our past is! We're still sisters and we always will be." Suddenly, Raven felt her arms against her chest. "What? Ebony, you're starting to disappear!"  
  
"Slade and Mumbo Jumbo cast a spell on me. If I agreed to serve them, they'd restore my spirit to my body. That was the only sure-fire way I could see you again. Now that's I've gone and told you this, the spell is being undone. I'm dying."  
  
Ebony collapsed, breathing hard. Raven tried to grab her, but her arms went right through the poor girl. She looked at her hands and then to Ebony. This was way too much.  
  
"No!" she screamed. "I won't lose you again!"  
  
Apparently, fate wasn't listening. Ebony disappeared into thin air, leaving a small trail of blue sparkles behind.  
  
"You liar!" Raven screamed into the air. "You told me that everything was fine when you came! This doesn't seem too fine!" She stood up. "You said that you came back from the dead for good. You made yourself completely at home in Titans Tower. But, no! You went and made a deal with our worst enemy and then died all over again! Do you know how much anguish I suffered through when you died the first time? Did you think I wanted to go through that whole episode again?"  
  
Raven dropped to her knees and cried.  
  
"You idiot," she mumbled. "You little lying bitch,"  
  
~*End of Chapter Five*~ 


	6. Chapter 6: The Funeral

Disclaimer: See chapter one.  
  
Alright, time for a bit of a deal. Tlegg11, I've decided that the last story in the Ebony Saga will indeed have Terra in it, but it will be a Robin/Jinx. I promised another reviewed that I'd do that. She's been begging me! Starre, the last story will have Robin/Jinx. Okay? Cool! Let's finish up "Death Is Too Easy" so I can get on with that last story.  
  
~*Chapter 6*~  
  
Raven looked to the calendar hanging in her room. The month was April. The day was the fourteenth. It was a Sunday. It was the day of Ebony's funeral. Tears filled Raven's dark eyes. She used telekinesis to tear up the calendar, leaving tiny bits of paper scattered across the floor. She didn't bother to pick those up. Instead, she looked through her closet. She and the rest of the Titans had agreed to dress up for the occasion instead of wearing their normal superhero outfits. Raven frowned as she scanned the clothes on the hangers. She didn't really have anything nice to wear to something like a funeral. She had a lot of black stuff, but it was all her robes and leotards. This was not good. Raven sighed. She got desperate.  
  
Raven knocked on the door of Starfire's room.  
  
"Starfire, are you in there?" she asked. "I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I need to borrow something of yours to wear to the funeral."  
  
Starfire didn't answer.  
  
"Uh, can I have a little help here?" Raven asked again, getting annoyed. "I don't do fancy dress-up."  
  
"Please wait for one moment!" Starfire called from inside. Raven crossed her arms and tapped her foot in impatience. When the door finally opened, Raven took one look at Starfire and stood there in surprise.  
  
"How do I look?"  
  
"Oh, my God. You're wearing that to the funeral?"  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"It's not a punk rock concert, you know."  
  
Starfire stood in the doorway with the outfit on that Ebony had forced her to buy from the Hot Topic when the girls went to the mall before they battled Blackfire. Raven's eyes grew wide. She slowly shook her head and gently closed her eyes.  
  
"It's supposed to be a fancy event where you need to show your respect for the person that has passed on," Raven pointed out. "You can wear that next time we go to a dance or party."  
  
"Oh," Starfire sighed, "I guess I should change then."  
  
"Uh, yeah. Let me help."  
  
Raven walked past Starfire into her room. Starfire followed, looking at her curiously. She scratched her head and stood in front of the closet with her fellow Titan. Raven searched the closet.  
  
"This is nice," she announced, holding up a dark gray dress. It had black flowers lining the u-shaped collar and black sparkles down the long sleeves. She held it up against Starfire. "It looks like it fits you. Try it on."  
  
Starfire took the dress from Raven. She observed it for a moment and frowned. Reluctantly, she took off the shirt, skirt, and fishnets. She slipped the dress on and looked at herself in the mirror.  
  
"It's okay," she sighed.  
  
"What were you wearing those clothes for anyway?" Raven asked, crossing her arms.  
  
"Ebony and I bought those clothes together," Starfire replied. "I thought that if I could wear something that she bought with me, I'd be showing respect."  
  
"Oh," Raven said, "I'm sorry. It's just that, well, I want this event to be as normal as possible. That's why I'm going to dress up, too. Take off the spike bracelet and the combat boots. You can wear when everything's over."  
  
Starfire smiled and took the bracelet and boots off. She slipped on a pair of dress shoes and a Tamaranean diamond necklace. She looked at herself in the mirror.  
  
"You look good," Raven commented. "Now let's find something for me."  
  
Raven rummaged through the closet, throwing a few outfits on the floor as she passed attire she didn't like. Starfire's face went neutral. She ran a brush through her long, red hair. She sighed. It was going to be a very depressing day. She jumped up went she felt a tap on her shoulder.  
  
"What?"  
  
"What do you think of this one?" Raven held up a black sleeveless sweater with a turtleneck collar in one hand. In the other one was a long black skirt.  
  
"Um, it's nice," Starfire replied weakly. "You can actually have that outfit if you want."  
  
"No thanks. I just need something for the funeral. I'll give it back as soon as this whole thing is over with. To be honest, I do want to go to this. It's pointless to say good-bye to someone that has passed. We should have said good-bye back after we fought Slade."  
  
"I'm sorry to bring this up, but the rest of the Titans and I were separated and kidnapped by captors! I was transformed into a puppet by that horrible Puppet King!"  
  
"Oh, shut up," Raven spat. "I'm right, you're wrong! Get used to it!"  
  
Of course, Raven's anger triggered her power. She outfit she had in her hands split in half as well as the one Starfire was wearing.  
  
"Well, that was such an amazing move," Starfire announced sarcastically. She sighed. "I guess we have to wear our usual attire."  
  
Raven gave Starfire a stubborn look. She stormed out of her fellow Titan's room and trudged her way down the stairs to the boys' rooms. She stopped at Robin's first.  
  
"Robin," she said, rapping on the door, "forget dressing up nice. We're all going in our usual outfits instead."  
  
"Why?" Robin asked from inside his room.  
  
"Starfire triggered my anger," Raven replied flatly, leaving for Cyborg's room.  
  
Eventually, Raven got to all the rooms of Titans Tower. The Titans met up at the front door, standing together, all of them: Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, Raven, Beast Boy, and Aqualad with Tramm. They were all thinking the same thing, and they could tell. None of them wanted to go to this funeral. It would be excessively depressing and hard for anyone, even Aqualad who didn't really know her, to say good-bye to Ebony.  
  
"I guess we should go," Cyborg announced, shuffling his feet somewhat.  
  
"Yeah," Beast Boy agreed. Raven shook her head and walked out first with her hood pulled low on her face making it more in shadow than it usually was. The rest of the Titans followed, making nervous moves, unsure of what was going to happen.  
  
At the cemetery, the Titans stood around the casket about to be lowered into the ground. They as well as a few other people were there. The Titans had decided that Ebony should be buried on Earth instead of on Azarath. That way, they could always visit her when they weren't on the job.  
  
"Well, do the Titans want to say anything before we pay our final sad good-byes?" the priest asked. "I understand they have a few things they'd like to give Ebony. Robin, why don't you go first?"  
  
"Alright,"  
  
Robin stepped forward, a book in his hands. "Uh, wow, this is harder than I thought it would be," he announced, scratching his head. "I guess all I can say is that Ebony brought smiles. Even though she was a little strange, well, it was sort of a sweet way. She made me happy." He looked at the book. "Ebony, I know you like books of poetry. Heh, just like your sister. You never bought that one book from the mall, so I bought it for you. Here." Robin placed the book on top of the casket and stepped back.  
  
"Cyborg?"  
  
Cyborg stepped forward and cleared his throat. "What to say about a girl like Ebony," he began, scratching his chin. "She was a lot of fun. She liked candy and junk food. She liked to sleep, too. Whenever she slept, she drooled, and that was funny. I think she once talked in her sleep. I couldn't exactly tell, but I heard mumbles coming from Starfire's room that night. I burst out laughing and then Raven told me to shut up, but that's not the point." Cyborg stopped and realized he was talking too much. "Uh, my present to Ebony is this. Girl, I must've gone to three candy stores, but I got you one." He held up a lollipop. "It's the triple sour watermelon kind with the bubblegum in the middle!" Cyborg placed the lollipop of Ebony's casket and stepped back.  
  
"Starfire?"  
  
"Ebony," Starfire mumbled, stepping forward, "I miss you so already! I love you so much! I wish I could've celebrated at least one Blorthog Day with you! You were so much fun, and you were such an amazing friend. You accompanied me to the mall of shopping and we had sleepovers and we played electric forms of amusement on the giant image-viewing device." Starfire sighed and held up an outfit. "This is the outfit you bought at Abercrombie and Fitch. I'm sorry I made you buy it, but you just looked so adorable in it. You said you looked hot in it, whatever that means, so I figured that you might want the outfit you bought there." Starfire laid the outfit down and backed up.  
  
"Beast Boy?"  
  
"Yeah," he agreed, stepping forward. "I liked Ebony a lot. She was cool. She was awesome at video games and liked comedy movies. She liked to play, too, and go outside and run around. It was fun but we can never go back to it. I miss all those great things we did together, no matter how short it lasted." Beast Boy held up a box and sighed. "It's mix for tofu pancakes," he announced. "I know how much you like them. It made me feel good when you said that you liked my tofu stuff. Even if you were just pretending, thanks anyway. I love you, dude." Beast Boy set the box down and stepped back.  
  
"Raven?"  
  
The world went silent. Raven stepped forward and pulled her hood off her head. She hid her body underneath her cape and held a straight face, giving her a blasé look. She took a deep breath and said, "Ebony was a liar. She was secretive and didn't want anybody to know anything about her. She made many stupid mistakes in life. She never told us about her early childhood, and even I, as her half sister, didn't know anything about it. I now even know that we're not completely related. That was a shock, but I'll deal. If she was alive today, well, none of us would be here, but Ebony would deal, too. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I loved her no matter how much of an idiot she acted." Raven squirmed in her spot. "I don't have anything material to give to Ebony. All I have to give her is my respect as a sister. I loved Ebony from the moment she was born. Sure, our 'family' is complicated, and we have a lot of problems, but I have no doubt that we can make it." Raven stepped back. For a moment, nobody spoke, but then everyone at the funeral applauded Raven and her speech.  
  
I little bit later, everybody walked away from the burial site after the casket containing Ebony was buried. Raven slowly walked away with her face in shadow of her hood. She stopped in front of a tree and leaned against its hard bark.  
  
"Sad, isn't it?"  
  
Raven jumped up in surprise and looked around the tree. She saw long, black, shiny hair flowing in the wind. She closed her eyes and remembered something that happened a long time ago.  
  
"Hi, Blackfire," she said.  
  
"Today was sad, wasn't it?"  
  
"Uh-huh. But why did you come?"  
  
Blackfire hesitated and finally said, "Ebony was my friend when we were little. You know that. I figured that it would only be right for me to show up." She sighed. "I'm sorry for your loss."  
  
"Thank you," Raven replied. She looked at Blackfire and saw how injured she was from the battle with her a while ago. Blackfire had a cast on her right wrist and a few bandages around her head. "Have you healed from most of your injuries?"  
  
"Mostly," Blackfire said. "This is just a little bit of stuff left over."  
  
"Oh,"  
  
"Yeah,"  
  
Raven became quiet and walked away from the tree to leave Blackfire to her thoughts. She strolled over to a small patch of flowers sitting against rock. She frowned and sat down on the rock. She buried her face in her palms and let a single tear fall from each of her eyes.  
  
"Raven?"  
  
Raven looked up to see Thunder and Lightning looking down at her. Lightning offered his hand and pulled Raven to her feet.  
  
"What are you guys doing here?" she asked.  
  
"We were thinking about what you had said earlier about siblings and wanted to show respect to your sister," Thunder replied. "We thought it was only right."  
  
"Thanks, guys."  
  
"We're sorry about letting Slade get away, too," Lightning added.  
  
"It's not your fault," Raven reassured. "I don't think it's any of our faults. Maybe we'll catch him another time."  
  
"He just better not even think about infiltrating Fixit's place again,"  
  
"Yeah,"  
  
Beast Boy came up behind Raven. He put his hands on her shoulders and smiled at her.  
  
"Are you ready to go back to Titans Tower?" he asked. Raven nodded and turned. She walked with him to the rest of the Titans waiting for them on the other side of the cemetery. Raven looked back. Blackfire stood in the shadows of the tree with her arms crossed. Thunder and Lightning stood next to the flowers. All three of them waved. Raven waved back knowing she would see them again.  
  
~*End of Chapter Six*~ 


	7. Chapter 7: Blueviolet Lights

Disclaimer: See chapter one.  
  
Wow, depressing chapter, huh? I promise that happier stuff will come in this chapter and in the last story of the Ebony Saga. The next one will definitely have some humor in it. I figure after a dramatic battle with Blackfire, Ebony dying, Beast Boy and Raven falling in love, Ebony returning to life, a battle with Slade, and Ebony's funeral, we could all use a good laugh. Don't forget to review!  
  
~*Chapter 7*~  
  
A week passed. During that entire week, Raven disappeared. She went into her room and wasn't seen for seven days. Starfire, who was concerned for her, peeked inside her room. The Titans figured it was only right since she was the only one who was ever invited into Raven's room. The strange thing was, when she went in there, Starfire found nothing. The room was completely empty. The only thing going on was Raven's Magic Mirror, swirling with red and black lights. Starfire brought the boys into the room. Beast Boy and Cyborg knew why. They didn't dare say anything until she reappeared the next Sunday afternoon.  
  
Beast Boy leaned against the wall next to the door of Raven's room. He crossed his arms and tapped his right foot until he heard the door crack.  
  
"Hi," he greeted softly, "how are you?"  
  
Raven cracked the door open a little bit wider. One purple eye peered out from the darkness. It looked upset and slightly red and puffy, as if it had been crying. "Hello," she said back, opening the door a bit more.  
  
"Cy and I didn't tell anyone where you were," Beast Boy continued. "We figured that you needed some alone-time."  
  
"I did," Raven replied. "Thank you."  
  
Raven walked away with her hood pulled down on her face. Beast Boy watched, feeling a mix of sorry and love bubbling up inside him. He felt sick and he felt as if heart was going to explode. He liked it.  
  
Downstairs, Robin sat at the couch with a book in his hands. Raven's feet tapped the floor as she walked towards him. She sat down next to him with her own book.  
  
"Hey, where have you been?" Robin asked, looking up from the pages.  
  
"Away," Raven said in monotone. "Home. Needed to be where we were born."  
  
Robin went to go back to his book until he saw what Raven was reading. His face became disgusted.  
  
"Don't tell me you're going to read that after all you've been through!"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"It's a depressing poetry book!" Robin cried. "You'll never get over your sister unless you learn to have a laugh somewhere in your life. No quoting yourself or going to a kingdom by the sea today! Try this instead." Robin handed another book to Raven. "It's a comic book!"  
  
"It's not a respected piece of literature," Raven mumbled.  
  
"Who cares? It's really no big deal. You can read this stuff, you know. It's not like it's against the law."  
  
"Yeah, well,"  
  
"Just read it."  
  
Robin shoved the comic book open for Raven to read. She was silent throughout the first few pages, but then a small smile grew on her face. Then there was a giggle. Before Robin knew it, Raven was laughing.  
  
"That's funny!" she exclaimed. "A guy just sprayed soda in this girl's face, and she slapped him."  
  
"And that's only chapter one," Robin announced. "I've got the second book in that series if you want to continue it after you finish that one."  
  
"Alright, but only if you promise to read at least one piece of poetry out of my book,"  
  
"Deal," Robin picked up Raven's book and skipped a few pages until he found a long poem entitled "The Bells".  
  
A little bit later, Robin left the TV room to do some combat training in the gym. Raven continued to sit on the couch with Robin's comic book. It was quiet until Cyborg walked over with a box in his hands.  
  
"Hey, what're you reading?" he asked.  
  
"Robin's comic book," Raven replied. "He let me borrow it."  
  
"Well, I don't want to disturb you, especially after what was going on, but can I play this new stuff I bought for the Game Station?"  
  
"Go ahead,"  
  
Cyborg popped the game into the system and took one controller in hand. He sat on the couch next to Raven and clicked his way through the Start Screen. When he got to the game screen, he frowned.  
  
"Aw, darn it!" he shouted.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I didn't know this game was for two people. Robin's in the gym, B.B.'s eating tofu, and Star's upstairs playing with God-knows-what- Tameranean-stuff." He sighed but then his face brightened. "Hey! Why don't you be second player?"  
  
"Me?" Raven asked. "Why?"  
  
"I just told you. I need a second player."  
  
"Uh," Raven began, "why don't you wait for Beast Boy to stop eating tofu?"  
  
"Come on," Cyborg insisted. "I'll tell Starfire that you need a hug!"  
  
"GIVE ME THE CONTROLLER!!!" Raven grabbed the controller from Cyborg and pressed "Start" on the main screen. Cyborg paused for a moment, feeling a little shocked at how Raven reacted. He knew she didn't want a hug from Starfire, but that was a bit too much.  
  
"So, uh," he began, "do you want to just go to the course or do the time trial?"  
  
"Time trial," Raven replied. "Let's see who's faster."  
  
And so the two of them began the time trial course. The first course was hard with a lot of twists and curves. In the end, both players crossed the finish line without blowing up or falling off the face of the Cyberspace Earth. Cyborg checked his time.  
  
"Boo-yah!" he shouted. "New personal record!" He turned to Raven. "I'll betchya you couldn't beat that amazing time." Raven gave Cyborg a stoical look and checked out her time.  
  
"Boo-yah," she said, mocking Cyborg, "I finished two seconds earlier."  
  
Cyborg dropped the controller and shook his head. He looked towards Raven, human eye twitching. He got up off the couch and walked out of the room.  
  
"B.B.! Are you done with that tofu?" he called. Raven smirked and turned the game off with telekinesis. She picked up Robin's comic book knowing she had a new talent.  
  
About another hour later, Starfire came flying down the stairs with a brush and a few rubber bands in her hands. She had the biggest smile in the world plastered across her face.  
  
"Joyous greetings, Friend!" she cried. "I am immensely happy that you have returned from your journey to the place that you have not informed the Titans about. I, Starfire, wish for you to accompany me in a traditional friendship ritual: the performance of braiding techniques on another one's hair!"  
  
"Fine," Raven replied. "Give me the brush."  
  
Starfire's eyes grew wide. {That was not what I was expecting,} she thought. "Alright," Starfire walked over to Raven and sat on the floor in front of her. Raven took the brush from Starfire and began combing through her long, red hair.  
  
"I appreciate what you and the rest of the Titans are trying to do," she announced. "You guys are so nice."  
  
"What is it that you speak of?"  
  
"You're trying to cheer me up after the loss of my sister. Thank you."  
  
"Oh, it's just that we wanted you to not know of that so that the experience would leave your mind."  
  
"Starfire," Raven began, "images of past times do not leave one's mind this fast. They barely leave at all. If I were to try to get Ebony out of my mind for good, it would literally take forever until the day I die."  
  
Starfire's face became discouraged. She frowned as she looked towards the floor.  
  
"Do you still think Ebony is," She couldn't say it. It was too hard.  
  
"No, I don't," Raven reassured. "Ebony is up in beautiful Heaven. I'm sure she's happy. I don't think she was fated to burn up in Hell. I think we were both destined to be angels in the sky."  
  
"OH, I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!!" Starfire shrieked, grabbing onto Raven and giving her the greatest hug she could. "You have journeyed to the side of the happiness, sunshine, and frolicking bunnies!"  
  
"You're hugging me."  
  
"Oh, sorry." Starfire let go of Raven and sighed.  
  
"Oh," Raven huffed, "whatever."  
  
Starfire's face brightened. She grabbed onto Raven and hugged her with all her might. Raven rolled her eyes and looked out the window. The sun was setting on the horizon.  
  
"Guess I was away longer than I intended today," she confessed. She looked towards Starfire who was still hugging her. "Uh, Star, I'm going to go up on the roof for a little bit. I think I need some fresh air or something. We don't have that in Azarath."  
  
"Okay," Starfire agreed as she let go of Raven. "I will tell the boys not to disturb you."  
  
"You don't have to, but thanks anyway."  
  
Raven smiled and left for the doorway to the stairs up on the roof.  
  
Up on the roof, Raven watched the sunset casting red, orange, and yellow lights across the city and out on the water. She had her hood down, and the wind brushed her purple hair lightly across her shoulders. She sighed deeply and looked off to the side, wishing that the lights could be blue-violet ones. She was about to float off the top of the tower when she heard the door behind her open.  
  
"Hey, what are you doing up on the roof?" Beast Boy asked, walking towards Raven and sitting down next to her.  
  
"Just thinking," Raven replied. "I was just thinking about my family."  
  
"Oh," he said, "how?"  
  
"To make a long story short," Raven began, "I went to Azarath through my mind in order to discover my true origin. I didn't find my mother, but I did find Ebony's. She was really pretty. She had long, dark blue, shiny hair and skin as white as alabaster. I was almost surprised at how much she looked like both Ebony and me. Even though I found her, I feel guilty. I made her talk about her experience. You know, having to live with being an unwed mother. She said that it was so hard for her. She was really young at the time she had Ebony, so it was a really scary world for her. So much, she had no choice but to give her up to somebody. Me."  
  
"And you took care of her for all those years until you were called away to be a Titan?"  
  
"Uh-huh. That must be when she and Blackfire became friends. What else could she do? So, I feel guilty for that, too."  
  
"What else happened?"  
  
Raven sighed and said, "I told her that her daughter was dead. She stopped for a moment, taking that all in, and then tears fell. I totally hate myself for making her cry, but I lent her my shoulder to cry on."  
  
"That was nice of you." Beast Boy commented.  
  
"I also told her about Ebony's experience with us," Raven continued. "Hearing that her daughter had an adventure with us must have cheered her up. She then invited me to stay at her place. I accepted, and that's why I was gone so long."  
  
Beast Boy paused and announced, "Believe it or not, I know how you feel. One time, when I was just a baby Beast Boy, there was this girl on earth. She was older than me by a lot, but she took care of me and loved me like I was her own. The coolest thing was that she was a shape changer, too! It was all right, until, one day, evil aliens attacked the earth. Well, the girl fell protecting me."  
  
"She loved you like,"  
  
"A sister."  
  
There was a long moment of silence. Neither Titan spoke. They just stared out at the water which had resumed its normal blue color after the sun had set. Raven spoke first.  
  
"I wonder if Ebony and your friend are watching us right now," she thought aloud.  
  
"Maybe," Beast Boy agreed. "Maybe they're right here with us now."  
  
Raven sighed and stood up. "I'm going to bed." She started to walk away when she felt a tug on her robe. She turned around and looked at Beast Boy.  
  
"I love you," he said.  
  
Raven smiled and turned. "I love you, too," she agreed. The two Titans walked downstairs into the Tower.  
  
Raven fell asleep that night with an odd stirring in her heart, as if something strange was going to happen. She didn't fall asleep until late into the night. When she finally did fall asleep, she dreamed.  
  
"Where am I?" she asked. She shielded her eyes from the gray, fogging mist covering up the land. She looked down. There was no land. She was walking on water. She looked ahead and saw a murky apparition standing out on the water. "Hello!" she called. "Is anyone there?"  
  
The ghost turned, and there stood Ebony.  
  
"Hi, Big Sister," Ebony greeted, lightly waving her hand, "Raven." Raven frantically ran to Ebony, wishing that she wouldn't disappear. Luckily enough, she didn't vanish. Raven was even able to hold her sister's hands as if they were both solid bodies.  
  
"Ebony, what are you doing?" she questioned.  
  
"Waiting for you," Ebony replied. "I just wanted to tell you that I'll be talking to you like this."  
  
"What?"  
  
"I'll be talking to you through your dreams. This way, we can still communicate."  
  
"Can't you find someone good to bring you back to life?" Raven gasped, her eyes filling with tears.  
  
"No," Ebony said apologetically, "I've already died twice. I have to pay for my crime. Who knows? I might be reborn into the Living World at another time."  
  
"What if I never see you if you are reborn? What if I don't know who you are?"  
  
"Stop looking at the 'what ifs'," Ebony commanded. "For now, this is all I can do. Don't worry. As long as you sleep, you will dream. I'll be in every one of them."  
  
Ebony disappeared, and Raven woke up with a start. She shook her head and looked around her room. Her heart pounded in her chest as she breathed heavily.  
  
"Ebony's doing everything in her power to see me," Raven whispered. "I don't deserve to have a little sister like her. I don't deserve her tears. She cried, lied, and died all for me. How do I repay her? Can I even?"  
  
There was nothing more for Raven to say. She got up, took the envelope out of her closet, took the picture out of the envelope, and went back to bed with it framed and on her desk.  
  
It shined blue-violet lights across the floor.  
  
~*The End*~  
  
I used some Edgar Allan Poe poems in there. I'd also like to thank Hot Topic and Abercrombie and Fitch once again for the use of their names and clothes. 


End file.
